It has been known heretofore to employ various types of scaffolding structures in order to provide temporary means of shoring or load support in a number of industrial applications, particularly in building construction. Other types of known scaffolding arrangements are conceived and designed so as to allow workpersons convenient access to various elevations above ground level.
There are a number of problems and inconveniences associated with these known scaffolding systems. For instance, some of these systems have heavy and cumbersome constituent parts, such as post members, bracing members, ledger beams and transverse joists, which makes the transport and handling of such parts rather difficult. Other known scaffolding systems are not very versatile, in that they do not easily permit the same constituent elements to be employed in a large variety of structural configurations to suit different applications. Still other prior art scaffolding systems and techniques of assembly therefor do not permit the quick and easy assembly and disassembly of the structural components comprising the scaffolding assembly, thereby increasing the labour time on the job site which must be dedicated to scaffolding operations.
In addition to the foregoing disadvantages, many of the prior art scaffolding systems and assembly techniques for such systems are not well-suited for use in the so-called "flying form" structures well known to those skilled in this art. Such flying form structures are utilized typically in the pouring of concrete floor slabs, such that when the poured wet concrete which is supported by the scaffolding assembly during its curing phase has sufficiently set, the entire scaffolding assembly may be removed as a substantially integral unit and hoisted or "flown" above the newly cured first floor slab in order to support the pouring of another floor slab located above the first.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a modular scaffolding system whose constituent structural components are all amenable to manufacture by extrusion, thereby permitting the parts to be composed of relatively lightweight but strong aluminum alloys, thereby facilitating the handling and transport of these parts.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a modular scaffolding assembly which can be assembled in a variety of different structural configurations, and for which the bracing members between two adjacent post members of the assembly may be provided in a number of prefabricated planar arrangements, to thereby suit the particular shoring needs at hand.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a modular scaffolding assembly which provides a secure yet convenient attachment technique for connecting the bracing members thereof to the post members of the assembly, so as to facilitate the assembly and disassembly of the scaffolding system on the construction site.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a modular scaffolding assembly wherein height adjustment means may be provided at either or both ends of each post member of the system, thereby making the scaffolding system according to the present invention more suitable for use in the shoring of uneven overhead surfaces or for secure and level placement on irregular ground surfaces.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a modular scaffolding assembly which is amenable to use in flying form structures.
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of the invention and the preferred embodiments thereof.